Texas Fisherman Rescued By Police After Being Chased Up A Tree By An Alligator

Everything is bigger in Texas... even the threat of danger. One fisherman had quite the interesting expedition last week when his attempt at fishing got interrupted by an alligator. While casting lines at the Anauhuac National Wildlife Refuge (specifically the Bird Rookery Lake), a Texas man apparently got charged by an aggressive alligator. The gator allegedly ran right at the guy, causing him to drop his fishing pole and retreating to the nearest point of safety. That safety ended up being in the form of a tree, which the man climbed up to avoid the reptile, then called a friend for help. And as the story goes, that friend ended up calling the authorities for help. Once the Chambers County Sheriff's Office figured out where the fisherman was stuck, they set out to rescue him in their boat. They released a statement informing social media of the rescue mission they went on, which was helpful and informative, but the best part was the video they also attached to the post: "Chambers County Deputies took a call for service last night around 10:00 p.m. to rescue a fisherman from a tree on Bird Rookery Lake. The individual claimed to have been chased up the tree by an alligator while fishing and a friend called for help once he got to safety. The Chambers County Sheriff’s Office Marine Division found the individual up a tree on the US Corp of Engineers Property, the southeast corner of the Trinity River. The rescue was successful and nobody was harmed."

The little wave at the very end is hilarious to me. As if the Chambers County Sheriff's Office didn't already see the man up in the tree, the fisherman gave them a wave to say, "I'm right here!" Comedic, but unnecessary. I'm sure he was thankful that the authorities were able to come to his rescue, and that the gator didn't try to scale the tree he was in (alligators are actually great at climbing, so he got lucky). The Sheriff's Office went on to warn others that the bad weather and warmer temperatures would likely lead to more encounters with wildlife: "Sheriff Brian Hawthorne wants to remind Chambers County citizens and visitors alike that the wildlife will be out as the weather continues to warm up. Alligators, snakes, and other potentially dangerous animals call Chambers County home too. Be aware, use common sense, be respectful of the wildlife." Be careful out there Texans.